Day 53-July 17, 2016-Olympic National Park-Hurricane Ridge
66 in Port Angeles, 55 at the top of Hurricane Ridge
We drove the 17 miles up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park. After the entrance booth we started the 7% grade ascent through miles of white daisies on the side of the road and majestic evergreens on the mountains, through three short tunnels, then bright yellow flowers on both sides of the road to the top at 5242’. There’s not as much snow on the ridge as there was when we were here a few years ago and the fragrant purple wildflowers have gone (thanks to an early warm Spring, they say). But the mountains on the ridge are just as beautiful, maybe more so with the mist and fog. And the deer are just as plentiful. They are so used to people they walk right up to you in the parking lot. We forgot to pack a lunch so we had some chowder and fish and chips in the café, and both were really good. We looked at a video and some exhibits in the visitor center then went outside to a wonderful view of the Olympic range of mountains. Mount Olympus is in the distance but it was too foggy to see it today. A doe and twin fawns were in the meadow for quite a while just posing for pictures. It’s only 55 degrees but the sun is warm and the weather wonderful. We decided to walk the Cirque Rim Trail, a paved road through some of the forest. Most of the roads here are paved so you stay off of the meadow flowers, some of which grow only here. The pine smell is terrific. Not as much snow on the trail as last time we were here, just one bowl of it on the side of a cliff and a few patches here and there. Ran into a buck on the trail who decided to relieve himself in front of us-no shame, him! Drove past the visitor center to the end of the windy, narrow, rocky road, then turned around, there’s one way in and one way out. Back down the mountain we saw quite a few more deer, some in the middle of the road. The yellow flowers and then the white whizzed by in reverse order on the way down. Back in Port Angeles we went to West Side Pizza for a quick dinner, then back to the RV. Mickie came by with Bogie, the cute little white ball of fluff she’s dogsitting, to see the RV and say good-bye. We talked to Mike, the campground owner for a while and then just relaxed. It’s nice to do nothing for a change.